The 74 highlights the second iteration of the 100Kin10 Fellowship, which focused on supporting active STEM learning in grades P-3, and its efforts to give teachers the support they need to create space for risk-taking in the classroom.

“Providing more teacher support is important amid a shortage of STEM educators, said conference speaker Talia Milgrom-Elcott, executive director and co-founder of 100Kin10, an organization that supports STEM teacher training.

How to allow for this in the classroom is a tough question, so tough that 100Kin10 instituted a fellowship to gather thought leaders on how to make this happen. But a starting point is creating teacher evaluations that encourage experimentation and creativity, Milgrom-Elcott said. Teachers also should be made to feel comfortable telling students when they themselves don’t know the answers, which encourages a pattern of learning throughout adulthood.

“It’s OK to learn and fail in the classroom,” she said at the conference. “If we want our kids to be actual scientists and willing to experiment, our teachers need to be willing to do it too.””